chrisj wrote:
Fred, Arno has not visited the forum since April 2010. Like me, his main purpose in finding a way to sleep onboard was to stay in areas where camping is not permitted. If I am allowed to camp and trees are available, I generally beach my boat and sling my camping hammock on land. Personally, I only sleep aboard in shallow, sheltered areas - not gutsy (?foolish) enough to attempt it any distance offshore.
Chris, I admit going through 12 pages of posts is a bit of a chore, yet I know what you're talking about. I've been kicked off a number of perfect campsites that were deemed as IR (Indian Reservations), in Kayaks and a 14' Zodiac with a a 25 horse Johnson. Is sleeping aboard a boat as small as an AI/TI possible? Of course, it all depends on what you consider as your comfort level. Of course the anchorage has to be sheltered, running dual anchors in the direction of prevailing winds is a given. A swim ashore (or a paddle board) will be needed to tie the stern off to a tree, above tide log, fixed rock, or a piton driven into a crack in the rocks to keep the boat from swinging loose. (military surplus parachute line is thin, cheap and very strong for that purpose, and takes up little room and weight aboard).
A good sleeping bag and bivy sack can save you the bother to rig a tarp to cover your entire Ai/TI. Yet unless conditions are less than perfect, why bother? Better to find a way to camo your boat in case the Coast Guard (or the local Park Ranger) does a nightly check of these areas.
(I strongly recommend that if the areas are deemed as wildlife protection areas, there is a reason and you find other places to park your stern... Your brightly coloured boats and you can turn away sea birds that have flown for thousands of miles and are on the very edge of starvation and need to land to eat!)
Btw: When I learned to sail in Outward Bound, we learned on an open decked 28' ketch that used oars instead of an outboard. The bivy sacks were made up of 2 army issue ground sheets snapped together. They still work at the very low budget level.
Thank God, that in this day and age, bivy sacks are almost bombproof......regards to the outboard motor also, hehe
Just a bit of background on the Coast of BC: It's very rocky, beaches are not that common, however sheltered coves are a plenty as are overhanging trees that can shield the boat from overhead observation. I also strongly believe that Indian Reservations in Canada are a joke, as well as Native only fishing openings...that have been exploited to the upmost limit by the people who the treaties were meant to protect!
(Remember also, that the laws of the seas cannot keep you from safe harbour, if it is truly an emerg situation).
If there is a will, Yup there will always be a way..
Regards
Fred